Police Report: Jewelry store robbed

From Staff

Published Saturday, December 20, 2003

St. Augustine Beach

A St. Augustine Beach resident said she saw a man and woman scurrying down B Street in the moments after Treasure Seekers Jewelry Store was held up at gunpoint Friday. She said she took notice because the couple carried a kitchen-sized garbage can.

The woman said the couple was "looking not clean," as they fled from the jewelry store. A friend watched the man grab a bag out of the garbage can and throw the can on the side of the road. "Then all of a sudden there were dogs and cops," she said.

According to St. Augustine Beach Police Department Detective T.L. Prescott, this was how the store was robbed:

A man and woman came through the door about 12:30 p.m. and began to browse. They waited for a customer to leave, then the man jumped over the counter with a black semi-automatic handgun.

"He made the clerk stay near a bookcase next to the wall," Prescott said.

The woman got behind the counter and started taking earrings, charms and necklaces out of the main display. Then they ran with the jewels.

The St. Johns County Sheriff's Office helicopter Air One and tracking dogs Big Mac and Aron, were called to investigate.

"Unfortunately the tracks stopped a couple blocks away," Prescott said. He said it was uncertain whether the couple escaped in a vehicle at the point where the dogs lost their scent.

The man was in his late teens to mid 20s, standing 5 feet 10 inches, weighing about 150 pounds, with short, dark brown hair, clean shaven, and wearing a dark jacket and pants.

The woman was about the same age, standing 5 feet 4 inches, weighing about 110 pounds, with shoulder length reddish, blonde hair.

Prescott said the owner of the store had seen the woman browsing about a week earlier and her hair was brown.

POLICE REPORTS

The following was compiled from police reports collected from the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office (SJCSO), St. Augustine Police Department (SAPD) and St. Augustine Beach Police Department (SABPD):

Who: Matthew John Cline, 29, St. Augustine. Charge: VOP on dealing in stolen property, failure to appear (FTA) on possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. (SJCSO)

Who: James Arnett Kearse, 36, St. Augustine. Charge: Violation of an injunction for protection against domestic violence, domestic aggravated assault, domestic battery and tampering with a witness. (SAPD)

What: Purse, jewelry case with two rings, two pairs of earrings, and two bracelets. Value: $10,860. Where, when: A vehicle parked in the driveway in the 5100 block of Bridle Wood Court between Wednesday night and Thursday morning. (SJCSO)

What: Garmin GPS, a Furuno radar and a stereo. Value: $5,800. Where, when: A boat docked in the 1100 block of Friendship Drive in Fruit Cove over the last week. (SJCSO)